Religion and Aspirations for a Secular State in Iraq: Views from the Ground
Iraqis display growing frustration over politics in their country, which has boiled over multiple times in recent years. Most remarkably in 2019 when hundreds of Iraqis joined the Tishreen protests to demand change.
In July 2022, Enabling Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC), a DC-based NGO, conducted a survey that involved 1,062 Iraqis, focused on the age group 18 – 40, from off of Iraq’s provinces. The findings suggestion people express different and nuanced opinions on the role of religious parties in politics and clerics in state affairs, in addition to their ideas on how to replace the sectarian power-sharing form of governance that has proven to be dysfunctional since 2003.
Speakers
Introduction
Former ambassador to Iraq and Turkey, and Special Envoy to the Global Coalition To Defeat ISIS
Moderator
Hosted By
Middle East Program
The Wilson Center’s Middle East Program serves as a crucial resource for the policymaking community and beyond, providing analyses and research that helps inform US foreign policymaking, stimulates public debate, and expands knowledge about issues in the wider Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Read more